“A government big enough to supply you with everything you need, is a government big enough to take away everything that you have....”

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The following statement, or variations thereof, is often attributed to [[Thomas Jefferson]]:

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We do not find this quotation in any of the standard sources available to us.

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''' "A government big enough to supply you with everything you need, is a government big enough to take away everything that you have...."'''

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--Anna 16:24, 31 May 2007 (EDT)

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We have never found such a statement in Jefferson's writings. As far as we know, this statement actually originates with Gerald R. Ford, who said, "A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have," in an address to a joint session of Congress on August 12, 1974.<ref>Suzy Platt, ed., ''Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations Requested from the Congressional Research Service'' (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1989), 140. Available online at http://www.bartleby.com/73/714.html. See the [http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=4694 text of Ford's speech] at the American Presidency Project.</ref>

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This quotation is sometimes followed by, "The course of history shows that as a government grows, liberty decreases," which is most likely a misquotation of Jefferson's comment, "[[The natural progress of things...(Quotation)|The natural progress of things is for liberty to yeild, and government to gain ground]]."

Current revision

The following statement, or variations thereof, is often attributed to Thomas Jefferson:

"A government big enough to supply you with everything you need, is a government big enough to take away everything that you have...."

We have never found such a statement in Jefferson's writings. As far as we know, this statement actually originates with Gerald R. Ford, who said, "A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have," in an address to a joint session of Congress on August 12, 1974.[1]

Footnotes

↑ Suzy Platt, ed., Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations Requested from the Congressional Research Service (Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, 1989), 140. Available online at http://www.bartleby.com/73/714.html. See the text of Ford's speech at the American Presidency Project.